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Since JB was nice enough to let us do our laundry, and we heard it was still SNOWING in Park City, we decided not to go home. MK surprised us all by leaving super early in the am (sorry for all the goodbyes we missed) and driving me up to Dana Point. We had a nice breakfast and got on the Catalina Express over to the island. It was pretty choppy (read: hubby close to puking) but thankfully after he sat still while I had a coffee he was all better.

Catalina Island is really beautiful, we picked the perfect day too. It was warm and sunny. We played mini golf on the cutest little course. We rented a golf cart – which the entire island uses as a main mode of transportation.

Have you ever driven a golf cart? It was the best part of the day. MK drove up to the botanical gardens and I drove from there to a few view points and around the theatre (they just need to stop calling it a casino) to see the divers. I could’ve been happy just driving around all day.

We ate some expensive pizza and looked in the cheesy shops. All there is to do on islands is buy terrible souvenirs and eat ice cream, and we don’t do either of those things. MK let me play photographer with the nice camera so I look forward to sharing those pictures with you.

The boat ride back was much more calm, and we enjoyed the scenic drive up the Pacific Coast Highway through Newport, Laguna, and Huntington, where we spent the night. The drive and the sunset were so amazing.

The only thing is, I could live like this forever. My blog, my daily mom call, even keeping up with friends, would suffer. But I am evil and selfish and would sacrifice all that to be able to have these long random vacations. Who wouldn’t?

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The party continued after dropping the last of our family off at the airport. We hopped in the car after a big cheap Vegas lunch and headed to California.

I think I am still a little CA at heart. MK woke me up from my road nap – seriously, my family didn’t sleep – about 45 minutes out of San Diego. My heart swelled with all the excitement of seeing all the people and places I’d been missing.

We got all set up with the super awesome newlywed B’s. We got in just in time for Taco Tuesday with MR and my brother – seriously, he drove overnight from Vegas and went to work and still came to meet us, my family is crazy – and it was like we never left. I was beyond happy. We ran around seeing friends and eating yummy food all week.

We were there for the Hash, our running club, Red Dress Run. We also played volleyball Thursday and ran the Pink Dress Run on Friday. Down time? What’s that? Three crazy fun days and long nights later it was Red Dress time. My brother joined us, and it was so fun buying him a dress. A couple years back he might punch a guy in a dress, now he gets the funny of it all. I love him for that.

JB and I got all cancan costumed up, got the guys ready, and we headed out. The run was a riot. Smaller than the last two years but just as silly! We said some more hellos and some goodbyes at the Wavehouse on Sunday, and MK had to drag me out of there kicking and screaming.

I mean, our hosts were awesome. Awesome cooks, awesome bartenders. JB let me make soaps with her. And they have a remote with a touchscreen. I wanted to stay forever!

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We had a resounding success this weekend! Nobody fought! Everybody partied! We couldn’t get anyone to go to bed! The only crying was during goodbyes!

We got everyone around everywhere. I’m pretty sure the first timers saw more of Vegas than I saw my first ten times – lions, sharks, one casino after another. With a sweet person who was willing to stuff herself in the trunk a bunch, having the car really came in handy. I even had a bunch of firsts too, like the roller coaster at NYNY, and a comedian. It was such a neat experience to do things a little differently. It was a little sad that our pool day was cloudy, but you can lay around anywhere. We just keep sight-seeing.

If 12 of my family members can have that successful of a trip, anyone can. A little planning, a little research, and everyone putting on their party pants made it a trip I’ll never forget. And not just because I am better at blackjack than my Dad, Mom, brother, and Uncle.

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Everyone thought we were crazy to buy a house in Utah, and we were a little defensive. We had to tell everyone we knew what we were getting in to. And we kinda thought we did – know what we were getting in to.

Since ski season has ended, it has rained, snowed, rained, and snowed. There are even ski resorts still open, but we packed up our gear when Deer Valley closed. And we figured a few trips and some housework would tide us over until in was so nice we’d want to run around on bikes and in shorts and flip flops. I’m sorry, because I really hate people that complain about the weather. Hate it. Hate when every Facebook update is how your weather is where ever you are. Or when you complain about the weather where you are.

But I’m starting to think that warm days are never going to come. We went to Vegas for some sun. And came back, and it snowed. Each trip for house stuff through the rain or snow makes us want to quit doing house stuff. The excitement of a cute cuddly new warm baby helped, but I have had enough snow.

I like sun. And warm weather. And May for me for the last ten years has meant bikinis. I tried to think this wouldn’t be a huge adjustment, but it is. I’m craving some warm outdoors!

Yes, Craig, I know. No I told you sos. All we need is some more vacation time, I hope!

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In my next life, I’d go to school, become a chiropractor, start yoga young, give all my friends free adjustments all the time, and get hired by an awesome indie rock band that took me on tour with them to balance partying with yoga and back cracking.

I had to go to the super nasty valley to take our car to the ‘doctor’. Of course there was a bunch of $ crap wrong with it, and they gave me a little loaner with hamsters working the engine to run around in. I went out shopping in a rather uniquely trashy part of the valley. I got bored pretty quickly so I found a highly recommended chiropractor on my phone and got right in.

Last summer I hurt my back doing one of those pull up stomach crunch machines. It only hurt sometimes, when I’d ski wrong or move heavy stuff around the house. But all the yoga twisting reminded me I really needed to get it looked at. More recently, I knew I had done something to my neck as well. In Austin I had the most fantabulous chiropractor ever. There was nothing like going to see her after three weeks of leaning over my work desk typing on my computer. She realigned my spine every time it fell into the work desk rut. I hadn’t been since – four years or more.

I feel like a million gazillion bucks today. My neck WAS really messed up – and me sleeping on it in pain and trying to relieve the pain myself was making it worse. He fixed that, took care of my back injury, and gave me some tips for the future. A+ all around, except where he mentioned I might calm the yoga down if it was beyond my ability, since my body was pretty tense and tight, the opposite of what I’m going for. That was humbling and hilarious.